GUILTY Turkey - Sarai Sierra, 33, NY woman murdered, Istanbul, 21 Jan 2013 - #4

[ThinkHard]

A few people here who are familiar with the area by the walls where she ended up have stated that she wouldn't have gone to such an area alone. I looked at information online for travelers to the area, and there are sites recommending touring the walls. One such site (I hope this is the same area!) is:

http://http://www.tripadvisor.co.uk/Attraction_Review-g293974-d2161587-Reviews-Walls_of_Constantinople_Istanbul_City_Walls-Istanbul.html#REVIEWS

She may have read such a review, and the comments below it, and assumed touring the walls during daylight was a safe thing to do.

I can't get that link to open so I can't tell what area they are recommending.

However i will say its one thing to walk along them, but most people walk on the seaside side. The area she was found, its very obvious that there is evidence of inhabitants, and I can't see someone exploring that particular area alone. Even if they read it was recommended to see the walls, in that location I would think common sense and intuition would take over at that spot on the walls.

Additionally Sarai by her own commentary on IG didn't seem to do much online research into what to actually see and explore in Istanbul. So a part of me also has doubts she would be inclined to learn about that area from online research.

If she walked there (which I'm seriously starting to doubt if it was even her seen walking there) it would make more sense to me, that she was meeting someone.

 

[ThinkHard]

Do you think they released the video because they were starting to doubt it was her that day, and wanted to use its release, to monitor if other people who saw it had doubts, and or if someone would come forward who did know the woman on video if its not Sarai?

 

[SANDOVAL]

Do you think they released the video because they were starting to doubt it was her that day, and wanted to use its release, to monitor if other people who saw it had doubts, and or if someone would come forward who did know the woman on video if its not Sarai?

Maybe. Whoever that is...words come to mind: broken/defeated/exhausted/depressed....that body language is not a confident happy person IMO.
Where did SS actually spend the night of 20th? The landlord's note does not say a time he last saw her on 20th.
Maybe that large object was extremely very heavy, who knows.

 

[zarra30]

Well that evening would be the same evening Taylan claimed to have bathroom sex with her.

Can you provide a link for that? I'm only asking because I never found a quote from him where he gave a date. Sex in bathroom seems to morph somewhere into his lawyer saying tea on two occasions.
It might have been there but I missed it.

 

[NewYork625]

I can't get that link to open so I can't tell what area they are recommending.

However i will say its one thing to walk along them, but most people walk on the seaside side. The area she was found, its very obvious that there is evidence of inhabitants, and I can't see someone exploring that particular area alone. Even if they read it was recommended to see the walls, in that location I would think common sense and intuition would take over at that spot on the walls.

Additionally Sarai by her own commentary on IG didn't seem to do much online research into what to actually see and explore in Istanbul. So a part of me also has doubts she would be inclined to learn about that area from online research.

If she walked there (which I'm seriously starting to doubt if it was even her seen walking there) it would make more sense to me, that she was meeting someone.

Here's another site:

http://www.travbuddy.com/Istanbul-Constantinople-City-Walls-v385547

 

[ThinkHard]

:banghead:

A few people here who are familiar with the area by the walls where she ended up have stated that she wouldn't have gone to such an area alone. I looked at information online for travelers to the area, and there are sites recommending touring the walls. One such site (I hope this is the same area!) is:

http://http://www.tripadvisor.co.uk/Attraction_Review-g293974-d2161587-Reviews-Walls_of_Constantinople_Istanbul_City_Walls-Istanbul.html#REVIEWS

She may have read such a review, and the comments below it, and assumed touring the walls during daylight was a safe thing to do.

I went into trip advisor on my own, because the link didn't work, it seems the majority of the descriptions seem to be from a part of the walls that is further out along the Marmara coast, not just on the edge of the tip of the peninsula where sarai was found. Remember the walls are 4 miles or more long. She was found about a mile from Galata bridge...so there is another 3 miles of walls past where she was found. And as best as I can tell a lot of the wall description from the reviews seem to be at a more distant point from where Sarai was found.

 

[NewYork625]

:banghead:

I went into trip advisor on my own, because the link didn't work, it seems the majority of the descriptions seem to be from a part of the walls that is further out along the Marmara coast, not just on the edge of the tip of the peninsula where sarai was found. Remember the walls are 4 miles or more long. She was found about a mile from Galata bridge...so there is another 3 miles of walls past where she was found. And as best as I can tell a lot of the wall description from the reviews seem to be at a more distant point from where Sarai was found.

I fixed the first link. I had one http too many. This is it:

http://www.tripadvisor.co.uk/Attraction_Review-g293974-d2161587-Reviews-Walls_of_Constantinople_Istanbul_City_Walls-Istanbul.html#REVIEWS

 

[ThinkHard]

Can you provide a link for that? I'm only asking because I never found a quote from him where he gave a date. Sex in bathroom seems to morph somewhere into his lawyer saying tea on two occasions.
It might have been there but I missed it.

I can't but they are linked somewhere in one of these threads seversl times.

There were plenty of articles that referenced that claim, and I know for sure the claim was that if this bathroom sex happened it happened in the night of the 20th. That is why Taylan supposedly confessed to the sex, because he was nervous his DNA would be found on her body.

Perhaps another poster has kept better track of all the articles. I just know that peice of info was repeated in numerous places.

Ill do my best to try to track one of those down. But it's difficult because the same links keep changing and updating. When "news" of bathroom sex first came out, it was def reported that it had happened on the 20th. However that doesn't mean the bathroom sex story is true.

Before DNA results were released, the lawyer stated that Taylan had no emotional connection to sarai. But purposely did not answer the sex questions. After DNA results were released is when his lawyers more firmly pushed that they had only met for tea. So who knows what the real story is.

 

[zarra30]

I can't but they are linked somewhere in one of these threads seversl times.

There were plenty of articles that referenced that claim, and I know for sure the claim was that if this bathroom sex happened it happened in the night of the 20th. That is why Taylan supposedly confessed to the sex, because he was nervous his DNA would be found on her body.

Perhaps another poster has kept better track of all the articles. I just know that peice of info was repeated in numerous places.

Ill do my best to try to track one of those down.

I know Thinkhard, but the papers claimed a lot of things without providing sources and dates.

They sensationalized this case from Day 1

 

[ThinkHard]

I fixed the first link. I had one http too many. This is it:

http://www.tripadvisor.co.uk/Attraction_Review-g293974-d2161587-Reviews-Walls_of_Constantinople_Istanbul_City_Walls-Istanbul.html#REVIEWS

Thanks. I still don't think they are describing visiting the same part of the wall sarai was found.

Also my apologies I didn't mean to put that emoticon in my post.

 

[english]

A few people here who are familiar with the area by the walls where she ended up have stated that she wouldn't have gone to such an area alone. I looked at information online for travelers to the area, and there are sites recommending touring the walls. One such site (I hope this is the same area!) is:

http://www.tripadvisor.co.uk/Attraction_Review-g293974-d2161587-Reviews-Walls_of_Constantinople_Istanbul_City_Walls-Istanbul.html#REVIEWS

She may have read such a review, and the comments below it, and assumed touring the walls during daylight was a safe thing to do.

I couldn't open the link but had a quick look at some reviews on tripadvisor. They were all talking about the parts of the walls further round the road. Admittedly it was only a quick look but I didn't see anyone mention that part of the road other than to pass by o their way from their explorations to the Sirkeci area.

 

[ThinkHard]

I would suggest you use the banging head against the wall to express frustration with lack of information, not at other posters. You may intimidate someone with a new perspective from posting. If that was not your intention, then I apologize, but that is how I took it.

No sorry, I didn't even mean to put the emoticon in my post at all, it was a complete accident.

I certainly didn't mean to offend you or anyone with it, because I didn't even mean for it to be there.....again my apologies.

 

[NewYork625]

Thanks. I still don't think they are describing visiting the same part of the wall sarai was found.

Also my apologies I didn't mean to put that emoticon in my post.

Thank you. i will delete my post.

 

[ThinkHard]

I know Thinkhard, but the papers claimed a lot of things without providing sources and dates.

They sensationalized this case from Day 1

Yes of course they did, no ones arguing that. I had just said in response to the question who was she with the night of the 21st......was that SUPPOSEDLY that was the alleged night of the bathroom sex with Taylan....more as a point of reference....no one knows if that is fact....however a couple articles did cite LE as admitting yes indeed Taylan did tell them the bathroom sex story....if he lied about it that's another story, but according to LE he at least claimed to.

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/art...sex-man-met-internet-went-missing-Turkey.html

Here is just one of many articles making this claim.

 

[zarra30]

Taylan’s bathroom sex might be a male fantasy hyped by press or others.

Nothing about her seems to portray her as a woman who was even into the club scene: cover charges, high price of drinks, bathroom romps.

On the other hand, I hear there’s a hip arts community in Istanbul; installation artists, street performers, musicians, galleries. I'd think she’d be more drawn to that.

 

[monkey222]

If we sleuthers are questioning the identity of the red shirt lady then the possibility exists that those locals, ie. carpet card vendor, may have IDd the red lady in error, if in fact, the red shirt lady is not SS.

 

[ThinkHard]

Taylan’s bathroom sex might be a male fantasy hyped by press or others.

Nothing about her seems to portray her as a woman who was even into the club scene: cover charges, high price of drinks, bathroom romps.

On the other hand, I hear there’s a hip arts community in Istanbul; installation artists, street performers, musicians, galleries. I'd think she’d be more drawn to that.

I hear you, I think there is two separate questions here...

....there is the question of if it actually happened (which is not the question I was addressing)

....and there's the question of if he actually said it happened (which is the question I was addressing, and I don't think we know for sure one way or another. I was only pointing out, that at least in regards to the fact if there is truth that he CLAIMED it happened I'd be more inclined to believe that its true he claimed it happened, not that it did happen)

So I think we were each just addressing two separate questions within that claim.

 

[Herat]

At last we have a video clip of her walking rather than just still clips from 21 Jan.

http://www.hurriyetdailynews.com/Default.aspx?pageID=428&VideoID=486

Compare the walk to

http://www.hurriyetdailynews.com/Default.aspx?PageID=428&VideoID=465

I agree. In the first of these two videos, it really looks like the woman with the red shirt is carrying a fairly large boxy thing under her right arm. I can't tell if it's a bag, like a tote bag or actually a rectangular box.

In the close-up still photo, there isn't the same suggestion of a large boxy thing.

Oddly enough, when I first saw that The Big Green Bag was recovered from the apartment, I had the instantaneous flash that the bag she was carrying on Jan 21 was red- red leather bought locally, maybe with some embroidery or embelishments on it, squarish or chunky like a tote bag would be. It was just a thought that wouldn't leave my head.

I'm perplexed as to why the bag in the video is not seen on the still photo.

 

[zarra30]

I went back and read a lot of CMac's and other's posts regarding T. Lot's of points there

F IF IF the sex did happen, and IF IF IF it happened on the 20th, as the unsourced newspapers claim, did it actually take place in a bathroom?

If they were corresponding for 4 months, and if they both had apartments available, why a bathroom?

It seems so....I don't know....random... and filled with hundreds of people's DNA.

I've seen a lot of crime programs. I would hope LE has him her on video coming and leaving said "bar", if it's true.

 

[zarra30]

I hear you, I think there is two separate questions here...

....there is the question of if it actually happened (which is not the question I was addressing)

....and there's the question of if he actually said it happened (which is the question I was addressing, and I don't think we know for sure one way or another. I was only pointing out, that at least in regards to the fact if there is truth that he CLAIMED it happened I'd be more inclined to believe that its true he claimed it happened, not that it did happen)

So I think we were each just addressing two separate questions within that claim.

Absolutely, you're right, and it does bring CMac's "raise fists" back into the picture.

But he may have only been with her, if his DNA was not under her nails, so my point is that if he was with her, for any reason, bar, tea, etc, where did she go afterward?

Could she have gone somewhere else or started home and was followed?

Of course she still might be that woman on the video.
This is all speculation just in case she wasn't.
Her family would know best if it was her on the pics for the 21st, not LE, not us, as we seem quite confused.

MOO